


'Tis the Damn Season

by PetalsToFish



Series: Taylor Swift X Jily [6]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: 2020, Based on a Taylor Swift Song, COVID, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Morning, Christmas Special, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Romance, Song: 'Tis the Damn Season | Taylor Swift, Song: Christmas Tree Farm (Taylor Swift), jily
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:34:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28256244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PetalsToFish/pseuds/PetalsToFish
Summary: It doesn't feel like Christmas for Lily Evans, not after losing her parents to COVID before the Holiday season. She anticipates spending Christmas all alone until a boy from her past shows up and offers her a mutually benefiting deal that has her calling him 'babe' just for the weekend. 'Tis the damn season, after all.
Relationships: James Potter & Lily Evans Potter, James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Jily - Relationship
Series: Taylor Swift X Jily [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1512740
Comments: 10
Kudos: 59





	'Tis the Damn Season

"Merry Christmas, Miss Evans!"

Lily opened the front door to find her neighbors, the two little girls from the green house down the street, standing on her stoop. They had their brown hair in braids with red tinsel woven in. Their blue eyes were crinkled and their faces shone red with excitement. Beneath their Rudolph themed masks, Lily was certain there were wide smiles. Lily pulled her own pink mask up to her face as she opened the door wider. The oldest girl was offering a Christmas tin. The younger one was holding three more similar boxes for the other neighbors on the street.

"Mummy wore a mask and gloves when she cooked, so they were safe!" The oldest boasted, holding the tin out even more, "we didn't want to go this Christmas without baking."

Lily tentatively reached out and grabbed the tin, "thank you, girls."

"Merry Christmas!"

Both girls waved at her before they both began bounding across the street to the old Potter house. Lily turned away from the door and walked the tin to the kitchen. She wiped the outside with disinfectant before she opened up the tin. Some of the biscuits were still warm despite the biting wintry air outside. Lily plucked one out and bit into it, cinnamon exploding on her tongue.

Lily sighed and leaned against the kitchen counter, looking at the drab greys and blues of the kitchen. Even the old eighties yellowing wallpaper was a bit dim. The home creaked with old bones as the electricity flickered in and out. If Lily didn't start a fire, she'd be able to see her breath inside soon. She tossed the gingerbread aside.

It just didn't feel like Christmas.

Sure, the halls of local stores were decked with wreaths that wished passerby good tidings. The town square was covered in glittering lights. The houses lining the street were even decorated with a rare powdery snowfall. Lily's table was covered in cards adorned with cartoon snowmen and glittery snowflakes. The cookie tin had become a relic of Christmas along with every discarded letter.

It wasn't like Lily hadn't tried to get into the Christmas spirit. Christmas was her favorite time of the year. She'd watched every movie, listened to every song and felt the snow crunch under her boots. She couldn't find the Christmas spirit again, not even as she wrapped her sister's gift with brown parchment and red ribbon. Lily was starting to believe that 2020 would just be a Christmas without feeling anything but misery and loneliness.

The weight of being alone had just been too hard to lose.

Christmas Eve with champagne in her hand was nothing but a memory of Christmas' past. There would be no stockings hung over the fire. There was no whiskey to steal from her father's liquor cabinet to help ease off her shoes until she was dancing barefoot around the kitchen. There would absolutely be no laughing below flickering tree lights with her beloved family. It was just Lily, for the rest of 2020.

Lily walked down the chilly streets of her hometown, always alone, that afternoon. A mask covered her face as she juggled a milk jug in one hand and a cracked cell phone in the other. A man was ringing a bell outside the drugstore. His eyes crinkled in her direction and she knew he was smiling at her. She'd gotten really good at reading people's faces, even though the entire world was hiding behind masks. His mask was black with red and white candy canes covering it. It wrinkled when he spoke.

"Merry Christmas, you shine brighter than the North Star, love."

She offered the man a fake smile behind her mask, "thank you."

She was thankful she had to wear a mask, or else someone might actually recognize her smile was forced. Of course, the only people who could read her smiles were her parents and sister. Lily missed them all terribly as the holiday got closer. At least Petunia had called two days before. It had been quick, as usual. Petunia never spent much time on Lily. She had her own fancy housewife life in America, where her husband worked for a prosperous electricity company. Since Petunia was in America, she couldn't even fly home for their parents funeral.

Lily had attended that alone too.

She continued down the streets, lost in her own pity party. The snow was falling again and she blinked away wet slush angrily. One day, Lily was determined to live in California where the weather was almost always pleasant. She'd be able to go to the beach in January, watch shooting stars in person and never see a bit of snow unless she wanted to. Lily walked with a quick step, determined to get back into the house before the snow got even more unbearable.

Two blocks later and Lily was rewarded for her brisk walk the moment she entered the old Evans' townhome. She turned on the fireplace in the sitting room before taking the milk to the fridge. She placed the jug next to old pasta and a pack of sausages she was saving for Christmas Eve. Her lunch for work was a small Tupperware of rice and chicken broth.

She was so focused on warming the house back up that Lily forgot that she was still wearing her mask. She peeled the fabric from her mouth and tossed it onto the side table. It fell next to a dusty photograph of her parents on holiday. She winced, having forgotten to take the photo to the attic.

Lily's mother had gone first, in July. Rose Evans was the only nurse in the pediatric division to get COVID and die from it a week later. Lily's father, a retired firefighter, had followed only weeks later of the same symptoms. Losing them both had turned her heart into a frozen tomb. Lily used to be so full of life and promise. She had been about to leave for America for an internship with NASA in April. The internship was canceled due to COVID, forcing Lily back into her parents lives.

Now, in December, she was full of loneliness and pain. She felt like her parents left her behind, as if they'd planned to leave within weeks of each other. As if they'd thought it would be best to leave their youngest daughter alone with the house, the bills and the grief.

Lily was on her second job in a year after her long-time employer had to lay her off in March when they shut down the schools. Apparently statistics courses hadn't been approved for online learning. That made Lily, the statistics professor, obsolete. She applied to every job she could until finally getting a job at the local police precinct.

Lily hated working at the police station as an administrative assistant but was the only job she could take in the small town. She isn't even sure she could call it a job. It seemed like she was playing a maid to the captain, but it was the only thing keeping her from losing her childhood home. Once the pandemic was over, Lily would sell the house and move to America. She didn't want to stay in England alone. At least in California she could be closer to the last of her family and possibly work for NASA.

The only problem was that the pandemic did not seem to be going away. Numbers of people dying or infected by the virus were rising daily. The world was in chaos as governments tried to roll out protection orders. The vaccine had just been approved but the production did not promise instant relief to most people.

Lily sat by the warm fire in her house and used the flickering light to finish reading her favorite book. Her phone was charging next to her and sometimes it ringed with a notification from social media. She did not like to look at her Instagram, or her Facebook, so she ignored it. Watching people live life as if there weren't people dying as a result of such carelessness made Lily angry. She was astonished that people consider the loss of her parents a percentage, just a number, on their screen. She can't handle seeing people take pictures with their arms around each other. Half the time no one had masks on properly and sometimes no mask at all.

They weren't paying the price for their idiocy, and most of them would never pay it.

Lily certainly never thought she would be alone on Christmas because of a global wide pandemic. Her house wasn't exactly festive. She didn't want to go up into the attic for decorations in fear of seeing her parents things that she'd stuffed away hastily after their deaths. She just sat with her thoughts and her feelings, heavy companionship at its best.

At work, the station was decorated to the top of every floor. Officers walked around in Santa hats and ate cookies brought in by wives and mothers. It was a place filled with light and cheer, which was a stark contrast to her house filled with misery and loneliness. She continued to wear drab colors everyday. Her mask was the only vibrant thing she wore. The bright blue with the station logo was almost blinding in the light.

The radio played Christmas music as she worked on filing papers every Monday through Friday. She was not immune to the catchy tunes and sometimes fell into humming 'Carol of the Bells' or 'Wrapped in Red'. She labeled the files with a black marker and considered that she'd never felt so detached from life until that Christmas. It was depressing.

Then, during the middle chorus of 'I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas' James Potter fell, quite literally, into her life. Lily worked so diligently that she didn't originally see two young cops coming into the precinct wearing reindeer antlers and passing out cupcakes. It was not until one of them tripped over his loose laces and crashed onto her desk that she was forced to be in the present.

His black hair was in curly q's around his forehead, some of it pushed back by a black mask he'd shoved into his hair like a headband. A stupid grin, as wide as his face, was taking over her vision. His eyes were the color of scotch that her father used to drink every night before bed. Lily dropped her pen and just stared at the intruder as he stared back at her in pleasant surprise.

"You new?" He rolled onto his side and propped his head up against his hand. "You look familiar."

Lily pushed back on her heels so that her chair rolled away from his promising grin. "Would you mind getting off my desk and putting on your mask, please?"

"Oops, sorry," he said, "sometimes I forget the mask when I get really excited."

She blinked, "what's so exciting about falling onto my desk?"

He picked up one of her pens to examine, "nothing's more exciting than cupcakes."

His badge was shiny and reflected off the fluorescent lights above their heads. He sat up, moving into a seated position with his legs dangling off the desk below him. His antlers were crooked but somehow that just made him look more endearing. She felt a slight red flush move up her cheeks as she realized he was checking her out.

He stuck out one hand that happened to be covered in frosting from the cupcakes he'd been passing out. "James Potter, pleasure to meet you."

Lily startled, looking at him more clearly. She hadn't recognized her old neighbors only son, it had been years since she'd seen him. At least seven. She sat up and pushed her long red hair back.

"You're the Potter's kid."

James arched a brow, "do we know each other?"

She took one of his fingers that was not covered in green frosting and shook it politely. "Lily Evans."

"Evans." He chewed on the name for a moment before the lightbulb went off, "Evans, as is Waterbury Lane, Evans?"

Lily nodded. "We used to play hopscotch as kids?"

His grin should've split his face in half, it was so wide. "Well, let me get you a cupcake, Lily Evans, for old times sake."

Before she could say no, he hopped off the desk and went over to where another administrator named Remus was holding a tin of cupcakes. James plucked one with green frosting off the tray and then placed it on her desk. She examined it, marveling at the expert crafting of the frosting and reindeer sprinkles.

"I made 'em myself." He boasted, "with a special ingredient."

Lily couldn't tell if he was joking. James tucked one hand into his side and looked mischievous.

"Yeah I just took all that confiscated weed from room 34." He didn't miss a beat as every listening member laughed, "just kidding, it's cinnamon, no one report me to the captain. I'm still in trouble for the shaving cream in his hot chocolate."

Lily blinked wildly at James. She'd heard the captain cursing up a storm two weeks ago and watched him throw his fresh hot chocolate down the sink in the office. She would've never imagined someone would fess up about it, let alone joke about it with the rest of the office.

"You're the one who put shaving cream in his cup?" She asked.

James shrugged. "Just keeping it lively around here. Sometimes we all need a reminder to laugh."

She considered that she was the closest to laughing than she'd been in a while. James certainly knew how to make people smile. He'd been that way since they were kids. He used to start water balloon fights at the neighborhood playground. Almost everyone in the office was grinning as they ate their cupcakes. James certainly brought cheer to the halls without even really trying.

She tucked her hair behind her ear before letting out a soft, "thank you."

James' smile grew again. "You know, you're the first person in this entire goddamn office to thank me for my Christmas cupcakes."

She lifted her cupcake like she would've lifted a wine glass. " _'Tis the season to be jolly._ "

"That's what I'm trying to remind everyone."

"You're doing a good job with these cupcakes."

James gave her a wink and then continued up the line of desks to deliver his homemade cupcakes. She watched him go, surprised that she wanted to follow him. It had been months since she'd let even the tiniest grin appear and he had her considering to socialize. She got back to the files but she looked up once to find James at the opposite end of the room where he was laughing with some of the other officers over cupcakes. He'd put his mask back on but his eyes crinkled when he laughed.

He'd gown up a lot since the last time she saw him. The baby edges to his face had slimmed into a sharp cut jaw that was littered with black hairs. She hadn't even recognized him, not until he said his name. Lily can't recall the last time she even saw his parents outside, but they were older, so they were high-risk for COVID. Lily supposed they were snuggled away in their home, far away from the pandemic.

From that day on, anytime James was in the office, he waved at her. She waved back but she was nowhere near as enthusiastic as he was. One morning, he brought her a hot chocolate, promising her that the whipped cream was real. She still tested it with her pinky before she drank it. That made James laugh as he walked away.

Remus Lupin, the administration officer across from her desk, noticed their little exchanges and told her in confidence one morning, "he's a good bloke, if not a little mischievous."

She doesn't think he's much of a smooth talker. At one point he stumbled through his words like a drunk when he was worried that he'd offended her.

"Are you Jewish?" He was always so blunt and forward, this question coming after the tiniest hello.

"No," she said, "why?"

"Well your desk is barren of Christmas things," he replied, "not that there's anything wrong with that but, I could get you a few Hanukkah decorations."

"As thoughtful as that is," she said, "I'm not Jewish, and I don't need Christmas decorations either."

"Of course." He ruffled his hair. "I just don't want you to feel left out of anything."

"I promise, I don't feel deprived of attention around here."

He flushed as the insinuation in her tone. "Sorry, am I smothering you?"

"Smothering?" She said, "more like an incredibly persistent acquaintance."

"Persistence is key." He flashes a handsome smile, "especially when trying to befriend even the most stubborn of aquatints."

"Is that so?"

James jutted a thumb across at Remus Lupin's desk. "It took me six months for Remus to accept an invitation to play video games and now we're best friends."

Remus spoke up to add his thoughts, "don't try to fight his friendship Lily, James won't give up until you finally admit that you find him incredibly endearing."

"Because I _am_ endearing." James said, as if offended.

"Incredibly arrogant, more like it." Lily mumbled.

James turned back to her, "are you making fun of me?"

There was something about James that made her so playful, perhaps because they'd grown up on the streets together.

"I'm just saying that when you walk past the windows, you check your reflection everytime."

He grew flustered. "I do not."

"Except you do."

Meanwhile, Remus was laughing so hard that he was doubled over. Sirius Black, James' partner, arrived just in time to see Remus dying with laughter and his partner flushing red behind his mask.

"What just happened?" Sirius asked.

James ignored Sirius and put both his hands on her desk, "you know what, fine, I do check my reflection but you know what that tells me about you?"

"What?" She scoffed.

"You like to stare at me when I walk away from you."

Now it was her turn to flush. "What?"

James stood upright and ruffled his black curls, "don't be too embarrassed, Evans, we have something in common."

"What's that?"

"I like to stare at you too." He saluted her, "see you later."

"Take a picture, it'll last longer!" She shouted sarcastically.

"Whatever, Evans!" He waved her comment away, "I know you're staring at my arse right now!"

"In your dreams!"

James continued walking away with Sirius at his side. She was still flustered but she was smiling, a side effect of James' presence. Remus, whistled softly. Lily eyed her coworker, and James' friend, warily.

"What?" She frowned in Remus' direction.

Remus nodded in James' general direction. "I've never seen him try so hard to impress someone since Sirius Black joined our precinct."

Lily didn't answer, she just dove back into her work. The next morning, a small ceramic Christmas tree with colored lights was shining on her desk. The gift giver had left a note:

_I know you said you don't need decorations but 'tis the season to be jolly…_

_Merry Christmas._

_\- Santa_

She made sure to light the tree first thing in the morning when she arrived at the desk. James passed by her desk once and tapped the yellow star on top of the tree. Lily watched him carefully, aware of him more than anyone else in the precinct.

"Who was your Secret Santa?" He asked.

She lifted her eyebrow, "it wasn't you?"

James took a gulp of his coffee before replying, "isn't the point of Secret Santa to keep the gift giver anonymous?"

Lily tossed her red hair over her shoulder, "not very anonymous since I compared your handwriting on your reports to the handwriting on the card."

"And what were your investigation results?"

"They matched."

James smirked, impressed, "well, we have an investigator in our midst masquerading as an administrative assistant."

Lily picked up the note and waved it, "it wasn't rocket science, James."

James leaned on her desk, "but do you know rocket science?"

Lily put her chin on her hands and she flirted with the officer, "before COVID, I was a statistics teacher at Madame Prufords in London."

"Statistics professor at a posh private school." James sounded like she'd punched him in the gut. "Impressive."

She shrugged. "I only taught part time, I was supposed to be in California by now."

James leaned against her desk, "what did you want to do? Be a movie star?"

"Get my PhD." Lily confessed, "then work with NASA."

"Space?"

"I've always loved the stars."

He ruffled his hair. "Yeah, I remember when we were kids you would sneak onto your roof in the middle of the night with binoculars."

Lily was surprised he remembered such an intimate detail of her life, especially since she'd always been on the roof of her house so late at night. James saw her confusion and chuckled.

"My room was on the top floor." He said, "and I used to stay up late drawing."

"You draw?" It was her turn to be impressed.

He played with one of her pens. "I used too, not much time for that now."

"They are working you guys a lot." She wrinkled her nose. "Are you doing okay? Do you need me to bring your parents anything?"

James blinked at her in surprise and dropped the pen he'd been fiddling with. "'My parents?"

"Aren't they in their house?" Lily asked, "I just assumed they were there."

James shook his head and his voice cracked when he said, "I lost them both in November."

Her heart shattered at the look on his face.

"Oh James," she whispered, "I didn't know."

James adjusted his mask on his face in order to distract himself. "It's fine, it happened so quickly. I moved back here from London to take care of them so they wouldn't have to go outside or anything but—it wasn't enough."

The silence between them was almost painful. Lily did not know what to say, despite knowing exactly what he was going through. Then James seemed to shake himself out of the slump.

"So, the stars?"

She relaxed when he did. "I wanted to help build new spaceships."

"Wicked." James said, "then why are you here, filing our boring paperwork?"

"My grant was discontinued." Lily sighed, "and I couldn't afford to go without it."

"Bummer." But then he smiled. "When this is all over, maybe you'll get a second chance."

Lily stacked the papers precariously. "Yes well, when this pandemic is finally over, maybe I can go back."

"It does never seem to end." He agreed, slipping off her desk, "anyways, see you around Lily."

"Bye James."

The week of Christmas was busy now that curfews had been implemented all over England again. Lily was working a lot before Christmas and files were still stacked around her head. Most of the officers were working double shifts and tensions were getting high again. James came in from the field one day and didn't even glance her way as he trudged himself into the Captain's office.

She tried to catch his eye when he left the office but he stormed away, looking livid. She stood up almost immediately and grabbed his wrist in the chilly hallway. He seemed surprised by her forward action but she saw his fury seem to dissipate through his loosening shoulders.

"What's wrong?" She asked him kindly.

James just looked at her as if she was a ghost from Christmas past. Lily tugged him over to the side of the hall. He leaned against the wall covered in tinsel and he didn't take his eyes off her. Some of the tinsel fell into his hair, making him look festive despite his moody stare.

"James." She took his hand and he woke up slightly from his daze, "are you okay?"

James took a deep breath and then let it out. He glanced over her shoulder as another officer walked down the halls. The officer was named Severus Snape, a gangly and pale man around Lily's age. The two officers stared daggers at each other. Snape rounded a corner and James hissed before glancing down at Lily.

"He ripped a BLM poster from a protester."

"What?"

"We were working downtown and came across a protest." James explained, "and as we walked past, Snape grabbed a BLM poster and ripped it."

Lily frowned considerably. "What a dick move."

"I told the captain," James was clutching her hand, "but Snape only got a slap on his wrist."

"If you want," she offered, "I can go smack him someplace else that will leave more of an impression."

James let go of her hands to cross his arms over his chest, "why can't you be captain?"

"Uh," Lily snorted, "because I'm not a cop."

James stared at the Santa poster on the wall, "some days I wish I weren't one."

Lily didn't like to see him so down. It seemed unnatural for the man who literally lit up her life. She tucked her hair behind one ear. She found herself offering him friendship with one quick question.

"Do you want to come to my place tonight for socially distant chow mein and Christmas movies?"

James froze, her question shocking him, based on his dumbfounded look. She waited for him to process what she'd asked. He fiddled with his badge as he looked over her face to see if she was joking.

"I have a midnight to eight shift tonight." He said, "I'm sorry, chow mein and Christmas movies sounds so great, but I'm covering for a bloke because his wife got COVID."

"Oh, no I totally understand." She flushed, "you just seemed upset and I wanted to make you—I mean nevermind, forget I asked."

"I really do wish I could." James promised, "I've been lacking in Christmas spirit this year."

"I'm sorry." She stared at her feet nervously. "I can relate to feeling like a Scrooge."

James shook his head, "I think it would be better if I hadn't lost both my parents this year."

She lifted her head, "they certainly leave a large hole."

James flushed, seeming to realize he was making her uncomfortable. "Sorry, that's a bad topic, it just slipped out and I didn't mean to dampen the mood or anything l—"

"James," she cut him off firmly, "it's okay!"

James shook his head, "no it's not—"

"I lost my parents this year too."

His jaw dropped, "you did?"

She nodded, focused on his delicate expression, "both of them got the virus."

James confessed, "it just got harder to swallow, the closer I got to Christmas. That's why I made cupcakes and got you that little tree. I was just trying to make Christmas feel special again."

"You are the only person who I've met so far," she said, "who genuinely understands what I'm going through this holiday season."

"Well, I'm sorry we can't hang out together tonight." James said, "maybe next time?"

"Next time." She agreed.

She was disappointed to hear he was working all night. Lily said goodbye to him and fuck, if he didn't look just as disappointed as she was. Lily sat at her desk and organized files until it clicked in her head that just because James was working, that didn't mean she couldn't bring chow mein and movies to him. She left work early and got everything needed for a night at the precinct. James looked overjoyed when she walked through the doors at the beginning of his shift with boxes of food and her laptop.

"What are you doing here?"

"Bringing the Christmas spirit to you."

"Chow mein and movies on your laptop?" He nodded to her full hands. "Here, let me help carry some of that."

They turned his desk into a sleepover table with food, movies and a six pack of cider she'd smuggled in. James pulled out a chair for her to sit on. They settled into their food as they watched _The Santa Clause_ on Disney+ by stealing the precinct WiFi.

"This is great." He said when they changed movies, "I was fully prepared to watch Community re-runs until the morning shift arrived."

Lily stared at him under the Christmas lights. He was so handsome it was unreal and she wanted to kiss him. Technically, that went against social distancing, but he was so close already. They'd been near each other everyday for three weeks.

James caught her staring and he shrank under her intense gaze. "What's wrong? Is there something in my teeth?"

Lily shook her head, "no, just thinking."

James tilted his head at her, "about what?"

She ran her fingers across the wood grain of the desk. "How nice it is to have someone understand what I'm going through."

He licked his lips as he watched her fingers dance across the wood. "Yeah, when you lose the people who are your world, it certainly seems like the whole world stops turning."

"It doesn't stop turning though." She said, "I'm staying in my parents house and everything there just reminds me of them."

James frowned, "you live alone?"

"It's a quaint little townhouse."

James looked jealous. "Well, I live with four other blokes, so I never have peace to grieve."

"Yeah," she rubbed her arms awkwardly, "grief is my only company."

James leaned closer, "bet it gets lonely."

She didn't feel lonely, not with him there. She almost told him how she felt. Her anxiety kept her from telling James anything. Instead, she went back to casual conversations with the handsome officer. She remained professional with James...at least until the office Christmas party.

Because of COVID, the party was in three different rooms, making it so no more than ten employees were together. Lily and James were in the same room with Severus Snape. Lily hated officer Snape because he gave her the creeps with his vivid black stare. She left the room after twenty minutes of Snape staring her way, intending to get a breath of fresh air alone. She leaned against one of the interview room doors. She pressed one of her cool hands to her forehead.

"Having as much fun as I am, I see."

James had exited the party. He wore a button up shirt and a blazer as opposed to his uniform. Someone had sprinkled gold sparkles into his black curls. He leaned against the door beside her. She let her hand fall from his face, distracted by his presence.

"What made you dismiss yourself?" He quipped, "Anthony Brask's karaoke voice? Or the awful food?"

"Officer Snape was creeping me out." She confessed, "I needed a breather."

"That's understandable." James nodded, stretching beside her.

They both remained silent as they stared at the blinking red and green lights someone had lined the walls with. Lily felt his elbow brush against her side and the small touch sent electric shocks down her body. She stood upright, letting the door handle dig into her back to keep her from drifting off into fantasy.

"It still doesn't feel like Christmas." James' confession was met with a shoulder drop from Lily.

She glanced up at him shyly. "It's hard to feel anything when you have lost so much."

James leaned his head against the wall. "I can barely feel a fucking thing when I'm constantly reminded that my parents are ten feet under."

Lily reached out and took his hand in the space between them. James looked down at their entwined hands. Slowly, he dragged his eyes back to her face.

"That feels nice." His voice cracked.

Lily squeezed his fingers between her own. "Yeah, it does."

James leaned his cheek against the door to stare at her darkly. "I have not touched someone like this in a while."

She pulled his hand to her waist without thinking. "You can keep touching me if that'll help."

James turned, facing her so that there was only a little air between them. "Touching doesn't follow proper social distancing guidelines."

Lily looked at the little space between them before saying, "I think we already crossed that red line, officer."

"I guess." He searched her face for the answer to his question. "What if just for this weekend, to get through the damn Holidays, we be each other's emotional and...physical...support?"

"I'd say, 'tis the season to break a few rules and feel jolly."

"We're together a lot already anyways." He seemed to be trying to talk himself into his own suggestion.

"Like I said, I think we already crossed the line." She replied before sweeping onto her tiptoes at the same time that she pulled his mask down.

His lips were soft and so warm against hers. He took a deep breath before reaching behind her to open the door to the interview room. She stumbled back without a door to lean against but James swiftly caught her before she could stumble against the single table bolted to the ground.

His mouth covered Lily's again the second that the door closed behind him. She wrapped both hands in his blazer, pulling him closer. The tug offset their balance and they both stumbled backwards. Lily laughed as her hip hit the desk, taking the chance to sit on the cool metal. James settled between her legs. He pushed his hips into her and she sighed happily into his kiss.

Maybe it wasn't love, but it was nice to feel someone's skin against her own after months of nothing. He was good at kissing, making her feel as if they'd been together since they were kids, kissing him was that easy. They broke apart when cheering from one of the rooms shook them from their little dark paradise. James leaned his forehead to hers as she brought her heart back down from it's racing high.

"That was nice." He said, "I might have to get some mistletoe to make that happen more than once."

Lily dragged her fingers across his chin. "I'm still staying at my parents place, if you want to come by after work."

His hazel eyes traced her expression carefully. "I haven't been down that road in a long time."

"Yeah," she mused, "it was weird being back again when COVID shut down my school."

James leaned away from her and pulled his mask on. "Let's go, before someone noticed we've both been missing a while."

She followed him out the door and they entered the party together but no one noticed. Lily grabbed a plate of pizza and James went to go talk to the captain. Once, during Secret Santa, James turned his gaze back to her for the slightest of seconds. She smiled behind her mask and he smiled too.

He had her feeling like she wouldn't have to be so alone over Christmas. When he came over that night they ate leftover rice from her fridge and take-out chicken James had delivered. They didn't kiss again, but they both fell asleep on each other halfway through _It's a Wonderful Life._ When James woke her up the next morning for work, he had a cup of steaming tea in his hand.

"See you at the office," he told her as he handed her the cup.

"Bye." She stirred the tea with her finger to check the temperature. "See you there."

He smiled as he pulled his mask on and left the house. He must've had a call-in if he was heading to work before her. Lily took her time getting dressed that morning, picking out one of her favorite green dresses. When she looked in the mirror she almost felt like she could feel something besides misery again.

She went to work fully expecting James to drop by her table, but protests downtown had pulled most of the officers from the building. She knew that he wouldn't have his phone so she settled into her desk and started paperwork filing while humming along to 'Silent Night' quietly.

At lunch she was eating her leftover rice and chicken when a scuffle at the doorway made her look up. Officer Snape came in first with a bloody nose and bruised left eye. Behind Snape, Officer Black and Longbottom were flanking James like a protection agency.

Snape stormed into the Captains office and five seconds later, Captain Malloy came out, red in the face. Snape stood beside the captain like a mollified guard dog. Or a snitch.

"Potter!" Captain Malloy was a loud and not always very kind man.

James stood straight, proud, with his friends flanking him just as proudly. "Yes sir?"

"Did you attack Officer Snape?"

James shrugged, "sorry, the protest was insane, didn't see who punched the git."

"He did it Captain Malloy!" Snape cried, "he hit me in front of everyone! Check the body cams!"

"Ah," James crossed his arms, "yeah, if you look at the body cams...then I guess I should probably admit to throwing a punch or two."

"You can't go around punching other officers!" Malloy screamed, "what the hell is wrong with you?"

"Wrong with me?!" James beseeched, "Snape was being a racist asshole! He ripped BLM posters from people's hands! He was going to pepper spray a child!"

"Did the child cross police lines?"

"Yes but—"

"Then Officer Snape was in the right!" Malloy snapped, "it's up to the parents to control their children and if they can't, then we cannot be blamed for our own actions to protect ourselves."

James' jaw dropped, "what do we need to protect ourselves from? It was a child!"

"Then file a complaint, Potter!" Malloy roared, "but don't get into wrestling matches with your fellow officers when the precinct is already up to its ears in bad press from all the protests!"

James motioned at Snape, "you can't say he didn't deserve to be punched for trying to pull pepper spray on a child!"

"No one deserves to be attacked by their coworker!" Captain Malloy sounded exasperated, "for fucks sake, Potter, those people out there want you to lose this job! They want to defund the police! You aren't setting a good example by starting fights with your own squad!"

"Maybe we should be defunded." James said bitterly.

"Hold your tongue."

James didn't do as he was told, "we're supposed to help the people! Not scare them into submission! This year has been hard enough on everyone!"

"Well, if you want to join those protesters, go ahead." Malloy said sternly, "but you're on probation until the New Year, Potter."

James spun on his heel and stalked out of the office. Lily jumped up, pushing past Black and Longbottom. Lily caught James at the bottom staircase in a tiny corner by a dimly lit tree. She grabbed his wrist and he looked up in surprise to find it was her. Upstairs, they heard more people arguing. It sounded like Black and Longbottom were defending James.

"You did the right thing." Lily told James, "I'm sorry that you had to be put in that position though."

"I want to leave." James looked miserable, "go someplace new, anywhere but here."

"Well," she murmured, "then I guess that means you don't want to come over?"

"Do you want to start with me?" He asked, "knowing that I'm leaving as soon as I can?"

"You know I want to leave too."

"So we're on even ground." James determined.

Lily didn't like his reply but she brushed off her pain.

She'd already agreed to nothing but the weekend.

"What do you say we ditch this place and go get some beer?" She offered.

James took off his hat and nodded, "let's get the fuck out of here."

Lily and James went to the store and bought cider and beer. James ordered Thai while Lily ordered cupcakes from the local bakery downtown. They sat in a pile of food, drink and pillows on her living room floor. Lily turned on a Christmas movie and they sat back to enjoy their delivered feast. Halfway through the movie James spoke up.

"Did you not want to decorate for Christmas because your parents died?"

"Yeah." Lily shrugged uncomfortably, "did you decorate?"

"I did." James stared at a piece of chicken on a fork, "there is something about the glow of Christmas lights that make any room seem happier and I just wanted to be happier."

"Yeah." She pulled her knees to her chest, "I want to be happy too."

James dropped his fork and stood up. "Well then, come on."

Lily stood up and wobbled on her sleepy legs. "Where are we going?"

"To get some Christmas decorations."

Lily tilted her head at his outstretched hand, "I don't have a tree or lights."

"Lucky for you." James took her hand before she outstretched it, "I believe Christmas tree farms are socially distant accessible places and still open."

James pulled her into his truck, the one from the precinct that he used for private investigating. It wasn't marked but there were lights and a siren if needed on the windshield. Lily was surprised to find he had a photo of his mates and him on the dash. She picked it up and stared at the four boys grinning at the camera.

"Who is this?" Lily pointed at a stout boy in-between Officer Black and Remus Lupin.

James leaned over to look. "Oh, that's Peter, he was in private school with me."

Lily placed the picture back on the dashboard and took to staring out the window. The snow had been falling for a while and littered the ground in white piles. The wind was swirling it up, promising a frosty outside when they got to the Christmas tree farm.

They had to drive along muddy backroads to get there. James had turned up Christmas music and was singing to her incredibly offkey. She was laughing at his rendition of 'Run, Run Rudolph' as they drove down back country roads until they reached a farm.

It was quaint, with fluffy sheep and their dogs hanging around a giant red barn. The snow was thicker out in the country, so it looked like a Christmas card with colorful lights and tall green trees. James parked along a fence line covered in garland. For the first time in a long time, it actually felt like Christmas.

James opened Lily's door for her and helped her out of the truck. The cold wind nipped at her nose as she pulled on her mask. James took her hand, tugging her in the direction of trees. A few people were walking around with their kids and sleds to haul a tree to their cars. James waved at them, as most of them stopped to stare because he was still in his uniform.

"Do people always stare if you're in uniform?" Lily asked him.

James tugged on her hand to pull her closer. "Yeah, especially this year."

"What did you mean," she asked as they walked along the snowy road, "when you said you wanted to leave town?"

James watched a dog run past in the snow before replying, "I don't want to be a cop anymore, I want to go back to school and teach art."

"Why haven't you yet?" Lily tucked her arm into his tightly, using him for warmth.

James looked down at her with warm hazel eyes, "I was waiting to get my parents estate in order."

"Yeah, that takes a while." She tucked her chin, "I'm still dealing with my parents affairs."

"Will you go back to grad school when this is all over?" He asked her as they walked through trees that smelled like heaven.

"I always wanted to leave this town." She said, "like you, I wanted to escape too."

"What do you want now?" He pulled her to a stop beside some smaller trees covered in a dusting of fresh snow.

She wrinkled her nose under her mask. "I still want to go to graduate school in America."

"You'll get in." James said confidently, "you're too good for our little hometown."

"So are you."

They picked out a smaller tree that only seemed about four feet tall. It would be perfect for her small living room. James threw the tree into the back of his truck easily, making Lily appreciate his arm muscles beneath his clothes. Lily tried to split the cost for the tree, but he was adamant about paying for it.

"Please," she begged him inside the barn as he paid for the tree, "let me split the difference!"

"No," James hip checked her, "this is my gift to you."

Lily pushed him back playfully as they walked side-by-side to the truck. She was beaming, like a star, all because of him. She kept glancing sideways at him, loving the way he looked against the snowy backdrop. He wasn't taking his eyes off of her either. She went to open the car door and he grabbed her hand, spinning her back in his direction.

He went in for a kiss like they weren't wearing masks and Lily laughed as they both quickly pulled them down. He kissed her hurriedly, as if saying goodbye already. She threw her arms around his neck and stood up on her tiptoes. Her mask slipped out of her hands and into the snow as James pushed her against the truck door with a simple tilt of his hips.

Lily tried to pull back from his mouth to talk to him, but that only made him start kissing her ear. She felt the goosebumps lift her skin under her jacket. Whenever he pulled his mouth back the cold air hit her wet skin and sent shivers up her spine. He took his time on her, making her feel like she was burning in the snow. He studied her neck, leaving behind tiny bite marks that promised future bruises if he bit down any harder.

"Babe." She half whined in response to his sultry mouth at her pulse point.

"Hm?" She felt his devil-like grin against her skin.

Lily wound her fingers into his hair, "what's the occasion?"

James finally pulled away and she watched as he tugged out a twine of mistletoe out of his pocket. She wondered where he'd nicked it from, probably inside the barn. His eyes sparkled like the milky way as she flushed red.

James hung it over her head with a wicked grin, "Ah, 'tis the season to kiss a pretty girl under mistletoe."

She laughed again and he caught her laugh between his lips. She kept her lips preoccupied on his skin the whole way home. She kissed every finger, every knuckle and every divot in his palm. When they got lights at the store, James had to go in alone because Lily forgot her mask on the ground at the farm. She waited for him at this truck and when he came out carrying two boxes, he leaned down to nuzzle her with his masked face. She laughed at the feeling and pushed him away.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd laughed so much and it was all thanks to James.

They strung lights around the tree they'd bought together. He was right, the lights made the house a little brighter. When he finished wrapping the last strand around the evergreen, he grabbed Lily around the waist. She followed his grasp with eager fingers. 'White Christmas' played on the radio, eliciting a wintry and romantic feeling to shoot through her bones.

"Dance with me?" She rocked her hips against his suggestively.

James tucked her red hair behind her ear. "I'm not sure you can handle that."

"Why?" She leaned up to him, "is dancing a dangerous game with you?"

"I don't want you to _actually_ fall in love with me." He said playfully, "I'm skilled in a ballroom."

She scoffed, "yeah right."

"I am."

He twirled her with one hand as if to prove a point. The lights on the tree flashed by her eyes as she spun in a tight circle. James was a blur but his hand remained steady in her own. When she went fast enough, James seemed to glow as bright as the Christmas tree. Suddenly, he stopped her with a hand at her waist. She froze, her nose inches from his.

Slowly, he leaned down and caught her mouth for a sweet kiss. She molded her lips against his and moved along to his rhythm beneath the creamy golden light from the tree. His fingers wrapped into her red curls, tilting her head to deepen the kiss with a calculated tug of her lower lip. She ran her tongue across his lips before he opened his mouth wider in response.

"Babe." She pleaded against his hot mouth, "let's go over to the sofa."

James' mouth moved against hers with calculated precision again. "Call me babe again."

"Babe."

She pulled her mouth from his and lifted higher onto her tiptoes in order to put her lips next to his ear. She traced the curve to his ear with the tip of her nose. He shuddered from that action and pinched her arm in response. She grinned, pleased to know she could make him shake too. her tongue tasted his skin and then he made her kiss him again, his lips aggressive and quick. Her hand dropped to his belt and she tugged on it as she kissed him back, sighing into his mouth.

James grabbed at her sweater with one swift swipe of his hand and asked her, "what do you want?"

She let go of him to promptly pull her sweater over her head. The white cream wool fell to the floor and she stood there in leggings and her bralette. James' eyes traveled across her pink skin, stopping only to appreciate every curve before he yanked her back into his person. He was so warm and she was freezing without her sweater so she snuggled closer as his fingers reached for her bra clasp.

"If it's okay with you," he stared into her eyes, "it's okay with me."

"Only for the weekend?" She confirmed his intentions, "right?"

James licked his lips and didn't answer. Then he leaned down a half a second later to press a hard kiss against her mouth. She felt the fireworks in her heart, the agony there replaced by an agony transferred through his kiss. She kissed him back, her tongue tracing the contours of his mouth as he lifted her by her arse. She wrapped her legs around his torso, loving the feel of his arms buckled against her steady weight.

"You're sure?" she asked him through pointed kisses, "even though I'm leaving?"

"I'll be yours for the weekend." James replied, "the only heart I'll be breaking, is my own."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

James kissed along her jaw and didn't answer. They fell onto the nearby sofa with Lily straddling his hips and she purposefully rocked into his body skillfully. The movements made James hiss with desire into her mouth every time. They kissed quickly and without reservation, his fingers dipping below her waistband within seconds. She bit his lower lip in response, wiggling away from his grasp because she couldn't focus on undressing _him_ if he was touching her like _that_. James laughed against her mouth and crawled out from under her before pushing her back so he was on top.

"Rude." She blew her hair from her eyes, "I was in the middle of something."

James leaned down to press his teeth against her earlobe before saying, "I was in the middle of something too."

They fell into a pattern of fighting each other for the upper hand. Literally and figuratively. Lily hadn't thought she would fall so easily into someone's grasp but there was something different about James that made her feel a little more at home. He made her feel safe enough that she asked him to stay the night, even though she wanted to ask for longer.

Long after they'd tired each other out, when they both were laying on the sofa in each other's arms, she watched as James slowly fell asleep against her shoulder. She brushed her fingers through his silky hair. She didn't like the butterflies in her stomach that erupted when he subconsciously pulled her closer in his sleep.

She knew at that moment, that she liked him more than she probably should.

They slept in half the day on Christmas Day, just because they could. James cooked her breakfast and they played a board game under the glowing Christmas lights. At some point he got her undressed again and they both stumbled to the nearest surface to feel each other again. He cut right through her like a sharp blade, eliciting a need she hadn't felt in years because it had been hidden under her thick skin.

He was lethal with his mouth in every aspect of their day. She couldn't imagine how she'd let him go when the weekend was over. She would miss his smile when he left town. She would miss her own smile when she went to LA without him. In a few weeks, he'd become a steady part of her life. She woke him up by kissing him again, wanting to memorize the way he moved under her touch so she could replay it when he went away.

That night, under the Christmas lights, he pleaded into her neck, "Lily, hear me out…"

She bit playfully into his shoulder. "What?"

"I won't ask you to stay in town for me," he whispered, "but I like you a hell of a lot more than I expected."

She wiggled up to look into his eyes. "James, we're both planning on leaving."

"I know," he dragged his finger across her lips, "but I'd let you wreck my plans, just to be your man."

She chewed the inside of her cheek, "you're sure it's not just the holiday rush making you talk like this?"

James shook his head. "I've liked you since I saw you staring at the stars on the roof when you were ten."

She pressed her nose to his. "I like you too, more than would be suitable for just a weekend."

"Then it's settled." James kissed her softly before saying, "I don't know how I got so lucky."

"You make me really happy." She kissed him gratefully, careful to be presumptuous with her tongue.

James chuckled when she leaned away to take a break from kissing, "who would've thought I'd get a super hot girlfriend, at Christmas, during a pandemic?"

"Well," Lily traced the way the lights showered his skin in tiny golden stars, "you know what they say about this time of year..."

"What?"

James tilted his head adorably at her, like a confused puppy. Lily kissed him again, getting wrapped up in his arms before she replied wittily. His hands rested on her thighs, holding her down to him. She nuzzled him playfully until he was wiggling under her touch.

"' _Tis the season_."

James rolled his head back to laugh and then brought her down for another kiss. She fell into another round of kisses with James as the Christmas light twinkled above their heads. She felt peace settle around her that silent night while wrapped up in James' hold below the tree they'd decorated together after being alone for so long. Lily considered that her Christmas miracle was James Potter coming back into her life at just the right time.

'Tis the damn season, indeed.


End file.
